Dawn of the Tuskens
by SawHawk
Summary: A star wars Tusken noval!What more? Tell me!


3

Dawn of the Tuskens I Raiding Party 

The sand on the dunes of Tatooine glowed tangerine red with the coming dawn. The sand dunes of Tatooine rolled for hundreds of miles in all directions say for a copal of valleys such as the one directly in front of the 20 or so Tusken Raiders. Kinrath slowly eyed the small Republic ship that had landed two days ago in the valley just ahead of their position. A smart moveKinrath thought. The valley was a great place to defend against raids and raiders like Kinrath. Kinrath smiled to him self under his facemask the Republic was no doubt looking for the exact same mining camp the he and his party had attacked and raided three weeks ago. Kinrath leaned farther over his bantha's head trying to make out the number and the power of this new enemy. 10 maybe 20 Kinrath guessed but he could not be sour which was vary bad because he would never make an attack in less he was exactly sour about every thing. Wonderer (the bantha) shook his large woolly head and did the best a bantha can do to smile as Kinrath scratched his head just behind his large right horn. Kinrath brought his had up in a quick pointing motion and then waved it back down to his side. Quickly a Tusken scout slipped nimbly of his bantha and slid down the side of the valley. Moments later the scout returned over the hill and skidded to a halt at his commander's side.

"How many?"

"Three tens."

Kinrath frowned. He had seventeen sandraiders who were better on the ground than on a bantha. And he had his ten best elites who were capable of both ground and beast raiding. Kinrath motioned for the ground raiders to start their advance on the unsuspecting enemy. Kinrath poled the bag of frag grenades off the side of his bantha and looked over at his second. "Do you think that this is wise?" Kinrath questioned his second. Kinrath opened the bag, 2 grenades. "Do you think it's wise attacking a foe that has the better ground and superior fire power?" Kinrath asked as he threw the other tusken one of the grenades and dismounted. "You are the Elite One." The second replied while following his commander's actions. "And any one of us would follow you to any attack, even if you were to attack something as big as a sandcrawler." Kinrath smiled as he and his second rolled their grenades down the hill. Kinrath had attack a sandcrawler, many years ago now. And yes twenty young tuskens had followed him. The two grenades were just now rolling over the edge of the valley. It all seemed so long ago now, back when he and twenty other young tuskens were interring adult hood. When a young tusken is old enough he or she goes go out into the desert with food water weapons and their bantha to win their adult hood, to win their wraid plates. As they prepared to leave Kinrath felt nothing but an exciting anticipation in the honor of interring the Krayt Dragon clan as a full member. After he and the others were sent out into the desert Kinrath walked his bantha strait into the dune sea, in the hopes he would come across a herd of wraids. But what he did come across was a lot better. A sandcrawler. He new as soon as he saw it that he would have to take it. But he would need help, no tusken had ever taken a sandcrawler before and there was no way he could possibly take it alone. So he rode around gathering the other young tuskens and telling them his idea and were to meet him. He was successful in finding all of the tuskens (which was not an easy job) and than returned to the gathering point. All the youth had arrived save one. Kinrath made a quick but careful plan for the attack and gave each their orders. The battle was harsh with the jawas using their ado cannons on their sandcrawler and the tusken on their banthas but in the end the tuskens had ultimately won. Sixteen of the twenty tuskens came home victorious that day the other tuskens insisted that Kinrath lead the parade while the others game up the rear dragging the spoils. Nothing was ever said about the other youth who had fought and died to bring all of them such honor and yet it was as if they had never existed.

BOOM!

Kinrath looked up with a start jumping out of the reach of his own thoughts. The grenades had reached the bottom of the valley blowing three bewildered Republic solders into the after life. Kinrath smiled, the battle had begun. The sandraiders quickly jumped from their laying position and ran half way down the hill. The Republic solders were already taking positions and leveling their blaster rifles when the tuskens fired their first volley. Two Republics fell, one shot through the ribs sending him to the ground instantly, and the other through the shoulder sending him to the his knees clutching his new wound, and soon the valley was streaming with red and yellow blaster fire. The tuskens sandraiders were better marksmen then most of the Republic solders but the Republics had superior fire power making the tuskens easy targets for the one shot per second blaster rifles compared to the tuskens one shot per every three seconds and slightly less accurate. In a mater of seconds the sand held six more cadavers in it's deadly possession. Kinrath and his second quickly mounted there steeds, the signal had been given, the tuskens had charged. Kinrath and his elites started their banthas down the long hill into the battle below. A bantha is not fast creature it takes over 20 seconds to reach maximum velocity and still it's to speed is only 30 mp. But a bantha is as strong as a sandcrawler and as tough as durasteel, but not altogether unbeatable. Kinrath had lost his bantha Gaffi. Back after he and the other young tuskens had returned from their victory with the sandcrawler and made full members of the Krayt Dragon clan. The tuskens aster there impressive display were a nominated the rank sandraider. It usually takes a tusken years to gain that rank after their membership. But no tusken had ever attacked and beaten a jawa sandcrawler before and so the tribe leaders thought it right to reword the new members with the rank sandraider. During that time the Krayt Dagon clan and the Starhalf clan were having problems with their differences in other words at war with each other. It was one early morning when the Krayt Dagon village was attacked. Kinrath and all the warriors leaped from there bed at the sound of the charge. The battle was fierce Kinrath couldn't quite remember what happened before he reached the stable but he remembered all to well what happened after that. He had mounted Gaffi and was charging through the enemy line when a frag grenade blew up under his banthas foot. Banthas are the heart and soul of the sand people. It starts with the tusken children caring for the young banthas, but upon reaching adulthood, one tusken and one bantha team up in a kind of emotional bonding. And when the tusken dies the bantha goes into a crazed fit of fury charging at any thing that comes near. The Sand People wait until the beast

Tires of its rampage then turn it out into the desert to survive alone. Likewise when a bantha is killed the bereaved Tusken wanders off into the desert on a vision quest. There, the Tusken must come to terms with the spirit of his bantha brother. If the bantha wishes to draft his companion into the after-life, then the Tusken will die out on the sands. If, however, the bantha spirit guide is generous, he will lead the Tusken to another wild bantha, a riderless one, which the Tusken will take back to the tribe as a new companion. When such a Tusken returns he is mush esteemed by the other Sand People and given the title Reborn. Such a thing happened to Kinrath. But he found Wonderer, another wonderer looking for a companion. Wonderer had a saddle strapped to his back and a flask of water. The two bonded and were reborn. And so when Kinrath returned he gained the title Reborn and the rank Elite.

A loud crackle brought Kinrath's thoughts back to the now. Kinrath chanced a quick glanced at his right shoulder. The cloth at the tip of his shoulder was sizzling a laser green flame. Below the sandraiders where in a deadly battle of gaffi sticks and vibroblades.


End file.
